


I Found My Place (and it's in your arms)

by Willow_Alchemist



Category: Lego Ninjago
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, F/M, Fluff, Huddling For Warmth, Late Night Conversations, Nightmares, i love these two sm, lloyd is afraid of falling in love again after harumi, someone get this boy some therapy p l e a s e
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-22
Updated: 2020-06-22
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:00:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,298
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24863443
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Willow_Alchemist/pseuds/Willow_Alchemist
Summary: Faced against the Never-Realm's chill, Lloyd and Akita cuddle for warmth.
Relationships: Akita/Lloyd Garmadon
Comments: 4
Kudos: 30





	I Found My Place (and it's in your arms)

**Author's Note:**

> so uh,, this is my first ninjago fic,, i got sucked into the fandom back in feburary and kinda fell in love with these two (´∀｀；)
> 
> tbh i mainly wrote this bc of harumi. she broke lloyd's heart (and mine) so i wanted to give this boy the love and affection he deserves thru akita
> 
> enjoy!! ヾ(＾∇＾)

When Lloyd first entered the Never-Realm with the other ninja, he could only remember thinking one thing and one thing only.

_It’s so cold._

That thought never truly went away in the weeks they spent at the village. Once Lloyd would start to think he’d never be colder in his whole life, the temperature would drop impossibly lower the next morning. Sure, Lloyd had experienced his fair share of winters in his life, but this cold was... different somehow. It was piercing, and persistent. It seeped through any clothes or covers Lloyd used to keep himself from freezing, and even when he was inside by the warm fire, he could still feel its bite, as if the cold had embedded itself underneath his skin permanently. On more than a few occasions, Cole had had to stop Lloyd from sticking his hands _into_ the flames to keep them warm.

Now, Lloyd could only sigh and move himself closer to the lantern he and Akita used for warmth as he waited for her to return. The pair had been traveling all day, with Lloyd in his Titan Mech and Akita curled up on its shoulder, her eyes peeled and ears pricked for any signs of danger as they grew closer to the Castle of Ice. 

Once night had fallen, Lloyd suggested they settle down and before continuing in the morning. Though Akita had huffed in indignation, she did not argue. The formling did not want to waste a single second that could be spent avenging her people, but she knew they’d have no chance of taking on the Emperor if they pushed themselves too hard and neglected their own needs. 

Wanting to burn off her restless energy, Akita told Lloyd she’d return soon before changing into her wolf form and bounding off into the blizzard. Lloyd hated the idea of splitting up, but he found himself much too drained to even offer to go with her. Instead, he positioned the Mech in a way that would block the incoming barrage of wind and snow and settled himself on the ice-covered ground. 

Lloyd focused all his attention on the lantern in front of him, trying to distract himself from the exhaustion in his brain, the hunger in his stomach, and the cold on his skin. Just when he could feel himself warming up ever so slightly, the bulb inside began to flicker.

“No, no, no…” Lloyd mumbled to himself, taking the lantern in his hands. The light inside, as well as the heat it was radiating, was beginning to fade. He realized quickly that once it died, there was no restoring power to it, not while he was stuck in a realm that lacked the technology for batteries. Lloyd held the lantern close to his body, practically cuddling it to savor the last few moments of power it would have. The light flickered unsteadily for a few moments before it completely burnt out, leaving Lloyd in the dark. 

With the absence of anything to keep him warm, the realm’s chill seemed to set in on Lloyd even harsher than it had before. _I’m gonna freeze if I don’t do something…_ He thought, now shivering fiercely.

An idea came to Lloyd’s mind. He remembered seeing an instruction manual in the Titan Mech’s cockpit. He could probably use his powers to start a fire using the pages...

But that would require getting up…

Lloyd seemed to become even more fatigued at the thought of climbing up to retrieving the manual, but the prospect of a nice, cozy fire was too enticing to ignore. 

Getting up to the Mech’s cockpit was an exhausting feat in and of itself, but once he’d retrieved the manual’s pages, getting back on the ground proved to be much more precarious. Halfway down, Lloyd unknowingly placed his foot on a patch of ice that had frozen onto the Mech’s leg, and, once he put his weight onto it, found himself slipping before he could correct his error. He clawed at the Mech with his hands, trying to latch onto whatever he could to keep himself from falling, but he only succeeded in sending flurries of ice and snow down to the ground before he fully lost balance and followed them. 

While the snow on the ground did muffle the loud “thud!” that was made upon impact, it didn’t do much to break Lloyd’s fall as he landed face-first into the snow. Lloyd groaned into the dirt as a dull pain began to spread throughout his body. Part of him just wanted to lay there and hopefully pass out from exhaustion, but he’d already gone through so much trouble to get the manual, he might as well start a fire. 

Lloyd pushed himself up off the ground, snow sticking to his face that he didn’t even bother to try to wipe off. He looked down at the pages in his hands, and briefly considered if burning the manual to his only mode of transport and defense mechanism was such a good idea…

He just shrugged. _Eh, not like I ever read the thing anyway. I’m sure we’ll be fine._ Lloyd began tearing the pages from the manual’s spine, spreading them on the ground before snapping his fingers. Green flames sprang from his hand to the pages, quickly erupting into a roaring blaze. Lloyd let out a relieved sigh as he felt warmth again. It had really only been a few moments since the lantern had died, but those few minutes without anything to protect him from the Never-Realm’s merciless winter had been an eternity to the young ninja. 

Lloyd practically sank himself into the warm sensation, feeling his muscles relax and the tension in his body evaporate. The snow that had stuck itself to his skin melted, leaving refreshing hot drops of water in their place. Lloyd’s eyes fell closed. For the first time since he’d left Ninjago, he felt content.

Lloyd could feel the warm tendrils of sleep pulling on his mind, blurring his thoughts. He was just about to succumb to the feeling when a loud, distressed howl tore him out of his trance. Shaking his head to clear his fuzzy mind, Lloyd looked behind him to see Akita in her wolf form, sprinting towards him faster than he’d ever seen her run.

Lloyd opened his mouth to greet her, but before he could even think of what to say, Akita was head-butting him out of the range of the fire. For the second time that night, Lloyd fell face-first into the snow. He propped himself up on his elbows to see Akita frantically scraping snow and dirt onto the green flames with her paws, extinguishing all of Lloyd’s hard work in a matter of seconds.

Without the sound of the crackling fire, silence fell on the two travelers, the only noise being the howling wind and Akita’s panting as she stood over the ashen-covered snow. Lloyd’s mouth was agape as he tried to process what had just happened. It was only the absence of warmth and the return of the biting cold that snapped Lloyd back to reality, allowing him to speak.

“Akita, what the heck was that for?!” Lloyd yelled, getting up to his feet and looking down at his wolf friend.

A low growl sounded in Akita’s throat before she returned to her human form, an unbridled amount of rage apparent on her face. “You utter fool!” She roared at him, her fists clenched by her side as if she were holding back the urge to strike Lloyd across the face. “What were you thinking, making a fire?!”

“What-What was I thinking?” Lloyd fired back, his shock turning to anger as Akita shouted at him. “I was thinking that I don’t want to freeze to death in this wasteland!”

“Oh yes, let us avoid freezing to death by inviting a _whole new_ kind of death into our lives!” Akita spat. “With a smoke signal like that, you might as well have executed yourself and saved the Ice Emperor the time!”

“I-” Lloyd started. _Wait, smoke signal?_ With his mouth agape, Lloyd looked up at the sky to see some remnants of his fire still present in the sky as wisps of smoke. Lloyd’s face fell from anger to realization as he understood why Akita was so furious with him. “Oh…” was all he could say, feeling embarrassed that in his desperation for warmth, he’d somehow forgotten that fires make smoke.

“You understand it now?” Akita seethed. “You could have gotten killed.”

Lloyd hung his head in embarrassment, unable to meet Akita’s blazing eyes. “I’m sorry, Akita. I wasn’t thinking.” He admitted, his apology sincere. “It was just… the lantern died, and it was really cold… I know that’s not an excuse, but I hope you can forgive me.”

Akita took in a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down and suppress her fury. She still wanted to yell at the green ninja, ask him how he could be so thoughtless and put his life at risk, but she knew it would do no good. He really _did_ seem genuinely remorseful. “No, it is I who is sorry. I should not have blown up at you. You are unaccustomed to this environment, it is only natural for you to wish to stay warm.” 

Lloyd looked up, seeing that Akita’s amber eyes were filled with guilt. “It’s okay, you were right to yell at me. I promise I’ll be more careful from now on.” He offered the formling a small smile, which she happily returned.

“Thank you, Lloyd.”

As the adrenaline from being thrown into the snow wore off, Lloyd’s fatigue returned. His gaze fell to the ice-covered floor, and he suddenly missed the tiny cots he had been sleeping in at the village. They didn’t do much against the night’s chill, but something was better than nothing. 

Akita noticed his dejected expression. Wordlessly, she lifted up one of her hands and pressed the back of it to Lloyd’s cheek. The green ninja flinched slightly, not expecting the sudden contact. “You’re freezing,” was all the forming said.

Lloyd blinked at Akita. He wasn’t sure what to do as her hand remained on his face. It seemed that against all odds, the formling’s touch was warm. Lloyd wanted to close his eyes and lean into the feeling, but Akita’s words stuck out to him. She might as well have said the sky was blue if she was going to point out the obvious. Well, actually the sky in the Never-Realm was always a grayish-white, due to the eternal winter. But he was sure it was blue somewhere underneath the overcast. Either way, Lloyd didn’t know why Akita was telling him something he was very, very aware of.

“You cannot sleep like this,” Akita said matter-of-factly, pulling her hand away. Lloyd fought the urge to chase after her touch. He blinked a few times, pulling himself out of the daze she had inflicted on him. 

“Well, it’s not like I have a choice…” Lloyd pointed out. For a second he thought about sleeping in the Titan Mech’s cockpit, but with how small the space was, he’d likely end up with several different neck cramps in the morning.

Akita hummed thoughtfully. “I have an idea.” She told Lloyd. “Sit on the ground and stay still.” Her words sounded more like an order than a request.

Curiosity piqued, Lloyd did as he was told, planting himself down on the snow. He watched Akita as she switched back to her wolf form, giving her fur a rough shake once the transformation was complete. She padded towards him, her paws leaving indents on the freshly-fallen snow.

Lloyd’s curiosity turned to confusion as Akita placed one of her forepaws on his chest. The ninja tilted his head. He was then caught off guard as she began applying force, pushing her paw against him. “You… want me to lie down?”

Akita nodded, and Lloyd did so, the wolf’s paw following him down. Just as he was about to wonder what Akita was going to do next, the she-wolf was climbing on top of him.

“A-Akita?” Lloyd sputtered as the formling settled herself down right on his chest, tucking her paws and tail underneath her. Her amber eyes met his green ones with an innocent expression that asked if this was okay.

Lloyd’s mouth was agape as he stared at her, unsure of what to say. _Was this okay?_ He thought to himself, pondering the question. Even though she didn’t look like it now, Lloyd was still very aware that the wolf laying on him was a person and also a _girl._ He couldn’t help but feel a bit unnerved by the close contact they were sharing. Though, he had to admit that Akita’s fur was quite soft and comfy, like a nice blanket. Her pelt was designed to protect her from the Never-Realm’s cold climate, and it was certainly fulfilling that purpose for Lloyd at the moment by warming him up faster than any fire could. He’d take this over sleeping in the snow any day.

Not trusting his mouth to speak the right words, Lloyd only nodded to Akita. Satisfied, the she-wolf laid her head down on his chest and closed her eyes.

Compared to his companion, Lloyd found it much harder to relax. While huddling for warmth came naturally to the formling, Lloyd himself had never been this close physically with anyone, _ever._ His brain was unsure of what to think of it and fought amongst itself. One part of him reveled in the feeling of Akita against him. She was _so soft,_ and what made it even better is that she was _alive._ Lloyd could feel the rise and fall of her chest against his, see every twitch of her nose or ears, and hear her rhythmic heartbeat. What was keeping Lloyd warm was not a lifeless blanket or soulless fire, it was _Akita,_ someone he’d grown to care deeply for. This part of him wanted to stay this close to her forever.

But the other part was screaming she’s _too close, she’s too close, she’s too close_. It was telling him that nothing good could come out of this, and that he should shove Akita off him before it was too late. Too late for… what? Lloyd wasn’t exactly sure, but his brain persisted in tormenting him nonetheless.

The ninja squeezed his eyes shut, focusing only on his warring thoughts. As much as the latter half of him warned against it, Lloyd had to admit that he _liked_ being this close to Akita, and the thought of moving her didn’t appeal to him at all. Silencing the pessimistic voice in his head, Lloyd turned his attention back to the she-wolf on top of him, resolving to embrace the moment while it was here. Carefully as to not disturb her, he shifted his arms out from under her and delicately wrapped them around Akita’s soft form. She let out a pleased huff in response, but otherwise did not stir. 

Holding Akita close, the green ninja slid his eyes shut and found himself being lulled to sleep.

~~~

Lloyd’s eyes snapped open as he jolted awake, sucking in cold night air through his teeth. He felt paralyzed and full of adrenaline at the same time, his heart feeling as if it were about to explode out of his chest. His mind was yelling at him that he was in danger, that he needed to run. Lloyd tried to sit up but was stopped by a heavy weight on top of him, which only caused his still half-asleep mind to panic even more. He thrashed around uselessly until the fog clouding his mind cleared up and Lloyd realized where he was.

He was in the Never-Realm, lying on the cold, hard ground, but he was warm. Blinking a few times, Lloyd’s eyes focused on the source of this warmth- the formling Akita, who was still curled up on his chest, now awake and staring at him, her head tilted and a concerned look in her eyes.

Lloyd’s face flushed as he realized that his panicked flailing must have woken her up, and she was likely wondering what had caused this outburst. “S-Sorry Akita…” Lloyd apologized. “You can go back to sleep, it’s alright.”

Akita let out a whine, letting Lloyd know she did not believe him. Before Lloyd could reassure her he was okay, the wolf laying on him disappeared, quickly being replaced by a raven-haired girl, the frown on her face showing razor-sharp fangs. “It is not alright. Something troubles you.” Akita’s tone was harsh, but laced with concern.

Lloyd couldn’t deny the way his heart sped up after Akita finished transforming. It was one thing to have a wolf who was really a girl lay on top of him like a pet, but now _there was actually a girl that looked like a girl on top of him_ , chest to chest, and he had no idea how to react, if at all _._ “N-No, really, it’s fine,” Lloyd said dismissively. “It was just a nightmare. I get them all the time.”

“All the time?” Akita echoed, her eyes brimming with intrigue. “How often do you have them?”

Lloyd cocked an eyebrow, unsure why she was asking him this. “Um… I guess about… a few times a week?” Lloyd said after pausing to think. “Sometimes it’s more, but that’s only after something big happens, like…” he trailed off as his mind cycled through the many events that could fill in that blank. Being kidnapped by snakes? Getting possessed? Harumi’s betrayal? Fighting his father, like, four different times? Or was it five? He’d lost count at this point. Each of these experiences had left Lloyd with countless sleepless nights over the past few years, even long after the physical wounds had healed.

“I see. I myself have had many grim dreams since I lost my people. ” Akita murmured sympathetically. Her chin rested on the back of her hands, which were placed firmly on Lloyd’s chest, right above his heart. “I would like to help you, if I can. What is it that you usually do after having a nightmare?”

“I don’t exactly have a routine, but…” Lloyd felt a pang of sadness in his heart as he looked back on all the nights he’d woken up in terror. “When I was a kid, after I joined the ninja, I’d usually talk to Zane after really bad nightmares. I never meant to at first, but when I’d leave my room to clear my head, he was always there. Like he knew something was bothering me.” Thinking about it now, Lloyd realized just now much he missed the nindroid. “I still go to him sometimes, even though I’m probably too old to be scared of my own dreams. Zane never judged, though, and he always knew just what to say.” Lloyd let out a longing sigh as he finished.

“Zane sounds like a good friend. I see why you have gone through all of this trouble to rescue him.” Akita comforted, seeing just how badly Zane’s absence had affected the green ninja. “When you spoke to Zane after a nightmare, what did you talk about?” she probed, hoping she could provide him comfort herself. At the moment, Akita was all that Lloyd had. And Lloyd was all that Akita had.

“Anything, really,” Lloyd said with a shrug, though the movement was stifled because of Akita’s position on top of him. “Well, anything except the nightmare itself- that never helped. He’d ask me things like how my training was going, what I’d eaten that day, what new video games I’d bought- whatever it took to get my mind off of it.”

Akita nodded. “Well, you may talk to me if you would like. I know I am not Zane, but I am here for you if you wish to forget about your nightmare.”

Lloyd smiled shyly at Akita’s words. There was genuine affection in the formling’s voice that made the ninja’s face turn a deep shade of scarlet. “Thanks, Akita, I-I think I would like that.” 

With her acute hearing, it was unlikely that Akita could not hear his heart pounding just below her, but if she did, there was no indication of it. “Okay,” Akita started, but paused. It had been so long since she’d really spoken with anyone, what should she say? She thought back on what Lloyd had said to “Red” before. 

“Why don’t you tell me about yourself?”

Lloyd suppressed a snort of laughter. “Akita, I’ve already told you everything about me. What more is there to say?” He said, chuckling.

“No, I do not believe you have.” Akita’s eyes were serious. “Yes, you’ve told me much about your past and who you used to be, but not much about who you are now. I feel as if I know more about your friends, about your father, and about Harumi than I know about you.”

Lloyd’s smile fell. “Oh, I guess you’re right…” he said. He’d been really embarrassed about how he’d droned on and on when he thought Akita was just a wolf that didn’t understand him, but now he was realizing that, through all of that blabber, he really _hadn’t_ said much about himself, just what he’d been through. “Hm, well, ah… my favorite color is green?” Lloyd mentally smacked himself. _Was that the best you could come up with? Something that she can easily figure out by looking at your gi?_ Though, now that he thought about it, he had recently started to grow a bit of an affinity towards the color red…

“Is that all?” Akita teased, snickering at Lloyd’s flustered state. Lloyd tried not to think about how he could feel the formling’s warm breath right on his neck, or how he felt the vibrations of her laugh resonate through his body, drumming in tandem with his pounding heart. The ninja found himself unable to tear his eyes away from her as she laughed. When she was like this, Akita was… surprisingly cute? He’d mostly seen fiery anger or cold neutrality from the formling, but seeing this new, bubbly side of her was oddly captivating. His heart fluttered involuntarily.

“Haha, sorry,” Lloyd laughed awkwardly, though he wasn’t sure what he was apologizing for. Being a bad conversationalist, perhaps? “I guess these days I spend more time fighting than I do talking.”

By then, Akita’s laughter had faded, being replaced with solemn intrigue. “Then... what shall you do when there is no one left to fight?” Her eyes seemed to stare right into the ninja’s soul. 

When there is no one left to fight? Lloyd went silent, not expecting such a profound question. “I… I dunno. I’ve never really thought about that.” Lloyd realized he’d never even _considered_ that there might one day be no one left to fight. Ever since he left Darkley’s, his life had been world-threatening battle after world-threatening battle. Sure, there were grace periods in between where Lloyd and the ninja could relax for a while, but each one of them knew it was only temporary. There was always some kind of evil or another lurking in the shadows. _Would Ninjago ever truly be at peace? What would he do then?_ He’d gotten so used to ninja-ing all the time, it was hard to imagine a life where he wouldn’t need those skills anymore.

Akita could sense the ninja’s inner turmoil. “I see you are struggling, too.” she murmured with a frown. Lloyd could feel the movement of Akita’s chest against his as she sighed. “I face the same predicament. Ever since the Ice Emperor took my village, I’ve wanted nothing more than to get my revenge. But once I do… I will have nothing left to live for.” The formling’s voice was forlorn, so quiet that Lloyd could barely hear her over the Never-Realm’s eternally howling winds. “I asked you that question in the hopes that you could provide me with some insight, but it seems you are just as lost as I am.”

“I-I’m sorry, Akita. I wish I could help you…” Feeling guilty, Lloyd wracked his brain for something he could say to ease his companion’s mind.

Akita gave Lloyd a warm, genuine smile, the tips of her fangs becoming just barely visible. “You do not have to apologize. In fact, it feels…” she paused, looking for the right words. “... quite nice, to know I am not the only one unsure of my place.”

“Well, ah, maybe we can… find our places together?” If Lloyd couldn’t offer advice, he’d offer his support instead. “Y’know, so we don’t have to figure everything out on our own…”

At first, Akita did not respond. Instead, she shifted herself upwards and turned her head to the side, now practically nuzzling Lloyd’s neck. He could feel her eyelashes flutter against his skin as her eyes slid shut. “I... would like that very much,” she whispered against him.

_Ohh my god why was that so cute-_ Was all Lloyd could think, feeling like all of his emotions were going to burst all at once. He didn’t want to admit just how incredible it felt to hear Akita say those words. They were so simple, yet they somehow made Lloyd’s heart slow down and speed up at the same time. All Lloyd wanted to do in that moment was hold Akita close for the rest of time.

As Lloyd was coming down from his emotional high, he noticed Akita’s face had relaxed and her breathing had evened out. She’d fallen asleep on top of him without changing into her wolf form this time.

Lloyd didn’t mind. 

Lloyd didn’t mind one bit.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you so much for reading!! comments and kudos are very appreciated, they're what motivate me to keep writing (ง •̀ω•́)ง✧


End file.
